


Action Figures and Boxing Gloves

by SamIamSamIwas



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, I support the theory, Mirage | Elliott Witt Needs a Hug, One-Shot, a little sad, mentions of bullying, origin story for Pathfinder and Mirage, preteen Elliott, that Evelyn Witt made Pathfinder, to give Elliott a friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:14:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24211192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SamIamSamIwas/pseuds/SamIamSamIwas
Summary: Evelyn hates to see Elliott cry over being friendless, so she decides to take matters into her own hands.*Inspired by the theory that Evelyn Witt built Pathfinder
Comments: 4
Kudos: 34





	Action Figures and Boxing Gloves

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, friend! I haven't written fanfiction in a long time, but I decided to take a break from working on my novel to write something that felt good for my soul. I have a couple of one-shots planned(and maybe a few other things) but after reading the theory that Evelyn Witt built Pathfinder I was super inspired to write a one-shot/drabble. Please enjoy! :)

Nothing was harder than Evelyn watching her youngest son, Elliott, come home from school in tears almost everyday. They’d curl up on the too-small couch in their living room. He’d rest his head on her lap, one white clenched fist full of her purple skirt and the other holding his MRVN action figure to his chest. 

Her heart would clench at every sob that fell from his lips. Hearing her son get bullied broke her. As a mother there’s a natural instinct to protect your child from the people who hurt them, unfortunately for her, there was nothing more she could do than persistent phone calls to the school and meetings with teachers who did nothing. Evelyn felt like she had failed as a parent. 

In the last week, it had gotten worse. He’d come home with a black eye and a bloody nose. When she asked what happened, there were no sobs. He’d lay, dead silent, his eyes distant. 

Her heart sank to her stomach, Elliott was never silent. And as much as it broke her heart to see her son in pieces laying before her, she couldn’t force him to talk. Evelyn sat there, her fingers twisting his brown curls. She chewed on her bottom lip to keep the dam she was building in her chest from breaking. 

Evelyn had built the dam so well, too. One stick for every life event. It started when her husband went to war. That was the first stick. Then it followed as their oldest sons went too. Another couple of sticks there. Her parents' passing built the whole bottom layer and her husband's death built the top. The dam was tight and sturdy and big enough to keep all of her life's tragedies from flooding her. 

Yet, her son would break her. Curled up on her lap, his eyes were cold, like his soul was comatose. Deja vu welled up in her and the sticks shifted in the dam. 

Evelyn had watched her husband go through this before his death. Granted, he had fought in wars not schoolyard bullies. But when he came back, it was that same quiet fetal position and distant eyes that she swore took his life. This same look scared Evelyn like nothing else. Elliott was all she had left and a death like his father would be world shattering.

“Mom,” his voice was weak and cracked. “W-w-what’s the point of living if you’re... a-alone?” the last word came out as a rushed sob, one hand brushing the corner of his eyes.

“What do you mean, Elliott?” She knew what he meant, but she didn’t want to know what he meant. She didn’t want to think that a child so young would be questioning the validity of their own life. Evelyn had to do everything in her heart not cry. She needed to be strong. 

“I-I-I….don’t know mom...I mean, I kind of d-do. S-s-s..sometimes I think I’m better off…..” 

Evelyn held her breath. She didn’t want him to say it. 

“G-gone….” His words were a breathless whisper.

Had the ticking clock in the room always sounded so loud or was that her own heartbeat in her ears?

“Baby,” she pulled a thick curl and placed it behind his ears. She was fighting the swell behind the dam, taking each fallen stick and putting back on the sloppy pile. Watching him, knowing he was suffering, was torture. “Don’t say that.”

“But s-ome..so..me-t-times,” there was a hitch in his voice. “I just feel like I should poof. Like not exist. W-what’s the point of living if no one likes me? If I don’t have anyone. Ya, know? I just really want a friend.”

As a mother you want to tell your child they’re wrong. Hell, Elliott is wrong. People like him. People love him. Elliott’s always been a soft sensitive kid, but what can you say to make others realize this? 

Maybe she could talk to their parents...? Try to set him up with playdates...? No. You can’t do that for pre-teens. 

There was nothing she could do other than offer him support. Adolescents can be cruel, kids are assholes and they’ll do what they can to break you. 

“Baby,” she looked at him. Really looked. His tears had crusted on his cheeks and the tip of his nose was a blush pink. He didn’t look back, his eyes foggy and locked on something distant. She followed his gaze. It was the one picture of his father they left hanging up. 

Evelyn swallowed her emotions back, she could feel cracks forming in the wall she built. She was trying her best with Elliott. Her husband would know exactly what to say to make him feel better. He was the one who was good with words. 

“I’m sorry you’re hurting so much.” Evelyn wrapped her arms around him holding him tight, his face resting in the crook of her shoulder. She squeezed him tighter, “but baby you’re so loved and you might not see it now, or tomorrow, or next week, but you are important. You’re important to me, your brothers, and the people around you. I know things have been hard since your brothers left and dad passed, but I promise things will get better. Your heart may hurt now, but it’s not a permanent feeling. It never will be.”

Evelyn could feel his nose brush her neck, hot tears pressed into her. 

“But everyone hates me, ma.’ His voice cracked, as he pulled away to look into her eyes. His honey amber eyes wet and fierce. “I’m a-annoying and loud and I can’t t-t-talk right...people hate me for being me!” His face crumbled and his lips quivered. ”I just w-w-wanna to be someone people will like- ya know? Like the kind of guy who always has enough p-p-people to hang with. I wanna be someone different.” 

Evelyn wiped the tears from his cheeks and sucked in a hard breath to keep herself together. As a parent, it is hard to imagine your child as someone who is anyone but themselves.She rubbed his back as he sobbed. “Sometimes we all wanna be someone different, baby, we all feel like that,” her voice grew heavy. “ But you can’t live your life with those expectations.” She pulled him back, holding him arms length, his eyes never meeting hers. “There is only one Elliott Witt and you need to celebrate that. I know it’s hard right now, but love yourself. You’re smart, and funny, and handsome. If you’re anyone but you then you’re lying to yourself and lying to yourself is no way to live.”

He pulled away, arms crossed against his chest. “You don’t know that.” 

Evelyn chewed at her lip, he always was a stubborn child. “Baby, living your life everyday as someone who you’re not would be miserable, especially when it comes to relationships. Cats don’t bark, Elliott. You may smile but you’ll be miserable. I’ve lived a long fourty-six years and can promise that being someone you’re not will be just as lonely as not having friends at all.”

Elliott shook his head, standing from the couch. “Nah-ah, you’re wrong.” He spat.

Evelyn, reached for him. Her arms open, but the farther she reached the more he moved away. It hurt. It hurt that the last person in her life she couldn’t help. Tears burnt in her eyes, the dam was flooding her whole chest. 

“You don’t get it mom.” There was a harshness to his voice. He took a step back with each word. ”If I’m someone people will like, then they’ll flock to me.” He turned his back, his hand planted on his bedroom door. “You’ll see.” He twisted the knob. ”I’ll never be lonely again. I’ll have all the friends in the world!” The door slammed shut.

The dam bursted. 

Evelyn let herself cry. For the first time since her husband's death, she let the tears fall freely from her face. Where had she failed as a parent? A wife? She was an engineer. She could build things from scraps and put things back together, but the one person in her life that mattered the most she failed to repair. Maybe if her husband was still here he would know what to say to their son. Maybe he could talk some sense into him and show him that the bullies are wrong, and that he doesn’t need to change who he is to make friends. 

The room grew dark with night. The only sound was the soft sniffling of her and the ticking clock that was always five minutes off. 

A glimmer on the floor caught her attention. She narrowed her eyes. It was Elliott’s MRVN action figure, the silver paint catching the light of the moon so it became reflective. It laid lonely on the cold floor. 

The gears in her mind turned. What if she could give Elliott a friend? She was an engineer after all, sure, she mostly did holotech but she had a few other tricks up her sleeves. 

Maybe, if she could make the perfect friend for her son, he wouldn’t be lonely. He wouldn’t spout nonsense of changing himself. He could just be Elliott. 

She picked the figurine off the floor, placing it on the shelf. This idea was groundbreaking. The corner of his lips turned into a small smirk. She gave a wink and a flick to the action figure. That’s exactly what she would do. 

Parts for a MRVN unit were accessible if found in the right places. Of course, she didn’t have all the tools or the necessary space for a project this big at her home lab but the Paquettes would and they would probably have access to exactly what she needed.

Evelyn would do this.

She called the Paquttes and made the arrangements. They had a spare lab that they themselves were far too busy to visit. Evelyn strapped on her goggles, as she packed a few things from her home office. Tools, a picture of Elliott’s MRVN unit action figure for inspiration and her good luck charm. 

She opened the drawer at the bottom of her desk. A cloud of dust forming above it. She sneezed. Had it really been so long since she’d taken them out? 

The blue boxing gloves always seemed so big in her hands. She smiled at how silly they were, but she could never get rid of them. They were a little memento from how she met her late husband.

She tucked them safely into her bag with everything else. She knew her time in her secret lab would be short. A couple hours here and there after midnight each week in order to keep the secret from Elliott. 

Evelyn didn’t care how many long nights and black coffees it would take. Elliott was everything to her and he deserved to have a best friend. He deserved to have someone who, like her, knew just how amazing he was.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed, please comment and leave kudos. I apologize if my third person pov is a little rusty, I mostly dabble in first person. 
> 
> ~Special thanks to my sister who knows nothing about Apex but was willing to betaish/edit for me~


End file.
